Daily Yellowstone journal., 1887-03-11
CONVICT LABOR.

upon the territorial pententiary,
makes some suggestions concerning
convic, labor which commend them.
selves to the serious consideration of
those who have the interest of labor
and lsboring men ut heart. He says;
In my judgment, some steps should
be Immediately taken which will en-
able the territorial prisoners to be EN-
ployed in some kind of labor, i'm such
manner as will conflict 10 the least
possible extent with the products of
the laborers In the general commu-
nifty. Many of the prisoners urged me
TO attempt 10 bring about such an ar
rangement of their condition and con-
finement as will enable them to be
employed. Confined, as they are,
with nothing To do, when the term of
their sentence has expired they are
turned loose upon the world, disheart-
ened, in no condition to labor aud
with no m ans Of caring for them
selves, and physically wrecked, to the
extent that they are powerless, il they
would, 10 many instances, to over
come the evil habits formed prior to
to rise, II they would, To the dignity
of manhood Ii has been truly said
that an idle brain Is the DEVILS work.
shop, ami that when man Is turned
loose after three or five years confine-
ment, physically unable to cope with
other Ia Oorers 10 his struggle for exis-
tenee, We have added TO the possibili-
ities Of the commission Of crime and
have done nothing toward the refor.
nation of the convict. ] recommend
that some steps he Immediately taken
whereby the territorial convicts can be
employed a. | have hereinberore sug-
gested, believing that reform can only
be effectually attained by preparing
the criminal TO care for himself after
the expiration Of his confinement.
This question Of prison labor il now
occupying the attention Of the gov.
ernment, and Mr.. Wright, the COM
missioner Of the bureau of labor sta
tistics, has prepared report on the
subject which has been handed to the
head Of the interior department and
will soon be published.
IL represents the labors Of more than
"A year, and Is the most exhaustive
treatise on the. topic yet presented in
any quarter. From advance sheets of
the document comprehending most of
the conclusions arrived at by the
commissioner. IL 10 learned that the
number Of convicts employed in vari-
ious productive industries either under
the state account or the contract sys-
TENS is As, ,277, and that they annually
produce manufactured articles to the
value OF SOS, 75S, 900, their services be-
ing equal TO the lator of 5000 free
artisans. In point Of value the chief
product Of prison labor is boots and
shoes, amounting TO slO, ,0OO, 600, cloth.
ing coming next with ST., LOO, 900, and
wagons, harness and ssddlery and fur
niture having more than 81 900, 900
each.
These figures agree very closely with
the approximations which have hith.
erto been made for purposes OF com.
parison and argument, but coming
from the national bureau they will be
accepted by all who have occasion to
deal with this question. Except In
the matter OF boots and shoes the COM
petition Of convict labor with free
labor is Insignificant. Taken alto
gether the As 900 convicts who are EN-.
ployed in every description Of indus
try cut an unimportant figure In
comparison with the hundreds Of
thousands Of free working men en-
gagged in the same lines. Mr.. Wright
takes the ground that as ut
present conducted, the prison manu-.
featuring enterprises should be REFORM
ed, not so much in the interest OF hon.
est labor, though that is not lost sight
o., rs In the interest OF the convicts
themselves. He asserts that power
machinery is unjust to the prisoner
and 10 the free man, to the former be.
cause II prevents his acquisition of a
trade TO the latter beause IL enables
contractors 10 hire prison lauor at
cheap rates and enter into competition
with establishments employing free
labor. The result Of this is either to
give the prison contractor excessive
profits or TO place him in a position
where, by reason OF his cheaper labor,
he can bear the market for the pro-
duct In which he deals.
Commissioner Wright closes his re.
port with an urgent recommendation
that In the interest OF humanity and
the reduction Of crime the prisoners In
American penitentiaries be placed at
work exclusively upon articles which
can be procured by hand. thus enabl.
ing them TO learn useful trades and re-
duclpg their competition with free 10.
bor TO the minimum. Comtng from a
gentlemen who enjoys the confidence
OF both capital aud labor, the sugges.
tioDs advanced by Commissioner
Wright will be likely TO have an i'm
portant bearing upon the discussion
which the agitation Of the labor organ.
ixstions has provoked.-Butte Miner.